Demon’s Souls “Best RPG of 2009″
- Categories: Games, News
- Date: Dec 26, 2009 03:57 JST
- Tags: Atlus, Comparison, From Software, Mass Media, PS3, RPG
Demon’s Souls, notorious both for its quality and difficulty, has been awarded a slew of “best game” awards from the international games media, stealing the limelight from such titles as Dragon Age…
The game tied up “best RPG” and even “best PS3 game” awards from a number of sites:
GameSpot’s Best Games of 2009: Best Role-Playing Game
GameSpot’s Best Games of 2009: Best PlayStation 3 Game
IGN: PS3 Best Role-Playing Game 2009 – Demon’s Souls
GameTrailers: Game Of The Year Awards 2009 Video Game, Best Role-Playing Game
Famitsu’s worthless review gave the game 72.5%, perhaps indicating the publisher wasn’t generous enough in its advertising expenditure. Everyone else seemed to disagree:
Curious that one of Japan’s stagnant RPGs managed to beat out a truly groundbreaking game like Dragon Age…
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lol so much butthurt in this article it's priceless.
Demon's Souls beating Dragon Age: Origins for best RPG: Just fine.
Beating Uncharted 2 for best PS3 game: Unforgivable.
Uncharted 2's a good game, but Demon's Souls is the kind of masterwork that doesn't come along very often.
Played the game, didn't really like it and people at the convention center didn't seem that psyched about it either :\
I said earlier that I like Demon's Soul. However, I did not like it as much as the critics and some others here. I rate it 8-8.5. Best RPG, I do not think so. Demon's Soul's is what I would call an Action game rather an rpg. I know one could call it an Action RPG but I can't agree with that. The game is lauded for its difficulty, which I agree is difficult by contemporary standards. However, in reality as long as your careful it is not that difficult. Most of my deaths in the game were due to intentional suicides for black world tendency. In fact the only section I would describe as difficult is the poison swamp, due to the inability to roll or step back and the constant life drain. Most of the boss battles were easy. If you come into the game knowing what you're playing its a cakewalk. It seems to pray on modern action gamers, who think charging in is the best solution. It features is a great amount weapons and the various weapon classes are unique which is good. I thought the combat system with its emphasis on positioning, strategy, and tactics was excellent. I do have to fault the lack of a straight pause feature, it should just be disabled for online play. Although many will disagree I never saw any replay value in the game. Maxing out weapons and level hold no interest. I admit I only went as far as completing new game+. The story is non existent. I wish they gave the merchants more lines. Having to hear same lines over and over is obnoxious. None of the npcs have any personality. The motto of the game is "me go kill now". The multiplayer aspect is okay. It is largely dependent on who you're playing with or against. Do I recommend the game yes. It's good for a single shot or two. Beyond that I recommend picking up something else. Do I think its the best game of this year no, it is one of the better ones.
I concur. Great action game, but there's not much beyond stats that could classify it as an RPG.
Other than the fact that it's actually a role playing game, right? I mean, you create your avatar and get thrown into the setting, and are then given the complete freedom to do whatever the hell you want however the hell you want to, including the mass murdering of any and all friendly NPCs and MORE...
DS is more of an RPG than the majority of RPGs out there. ;p
What roles can you play other than demon slayer? You can make cosmetic and mechanical differences, but your actions have absolutely no bearing on any semblance of a story.
This all gets into Diablo territory eventually where people have been arguing whether it's a hack and slash or a roleplaying game for years.
WRPG neckbeards coming out in FULL FORCE like always.
So even Artefact reads good ole' IGN. Dunno how I missed this one. Just ordering a copy for myself so thanks. ;)
After watching my bro play this, and playing a bit myself, I'm not surprised. It's an awesome game, as is Dragon age.
Don't forget -- GameSpot just announced its GAME OF THE YEAR, which was Demon's Souls!
Forgot to give the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgYBivaVco8
Why would Demon's Souls be notorious for its quality? It's generally thought to be a high-quality game.
Really happy that Demon's Souls is doing well. One of those games that rides on smart people loving it and not mass media halo/oblivion morons.
Ha! Serves you right, Dragon Age. I seriously don't understand what people see in it. It sucks from top to bottom (well, maybe except dialogues with party members). But I'm surprised that western portals have chosen DS over DA.
Hey Dragon Age is a GOOD GAME.Did anyone actually play it until its finished?If not why dont you play the damn game until its finished THAN you can comeback and critizised Bioware.And say in this forum what did Dragon Age lacks ?
Demon Soul was only for the PS3. Dragon Age was for the PC, PS3, and the 360.
lol not Final Fantasy enough for you?
....Demon souls was good?
Demon's Souls is a masterpiece
Dragon Age wins, we already know games sites are questionable after certain incidents.
lol I Wanna Be The Knight is more appropriate title.
Really now? How many fucking Medieval based RPG are there, seriously. Fucking ARPG and their medieval shit. Elves, dragon, ogre...same bull shit everytime.
Demons Souls was base on western rpg's thats why it did so well compare to a regular jrpg
Makes me wonder how many people here actually beat Demon Soul
I'm currently on my third playthrough using the Knight class. It's almost nightmare mode now as some enemies can 1 shot me. Shit is insane
>Famitsu’s worthless review gave the game 72.5%, perhaps indicating the publisher wasn’t generous enough in its advertising expenditure.
How can Famitsu give the game 72.5% if their perfect score is 40/40?
29/40, do the math...
That is a true asshole move and to be commended.
Reviews are good for judging games but you should also account for sales figures too. I know it might be too early to see a good representation of figures but you should not forget about sales.
Sales are a measure of quantity, not quality. Look at how many people went to see Twilight.
High sales means that something is done right. At the end of the day the companies does not really care about reviews and awards they care about money. Reviews are just a way to market the game.
But your right the quantity and quality argument.
This game sucks, and Dragon Age also sucks. Just completed it (Dragon Age), played for fricking 54 hours, and what did I got in the end? The ending sucked! (I have seen one, and have no desire to see another or play this game for another minute). The battles sucked, characters sucked (save for Morrigan, thou she sucked too, quite literally). The story had potential but in the end sucked too.
Sorry, got carried away. I wont play another w-rpg ever. they suck.
Demon's Souls is a game for real gamer.pussy gamer shouldn't try this game since they will give up in 10 mins.This game is for real hardcore ppl who own a ps3.
Seems Demon's Souls won Game of the Year on Gamespot.
a worthy choice. i thought uncharted 2 was gonna win though.
Coming from PC gaming (HD 1080p 'pretty stuff') I also have two consoles a Wii and a PS3. I had a 360 but took it back immediately after playing Halo 3 and getting the biggest disappointment in my gaming life (played Halo nearly 100 times on the original xbox console and Halo 3 was sad, in terms of graphics AND story). I had taken back the PS3 BC that I got instead of that 360, as the games looked terrible on a 1080p monitor, because in all honesty consoles standard size is 720p(in some cases less *shakes head*), and most games I played did NOT upscale well, plus Shadows of the Colossus looked terrible on the PS3 as well, and would've been better just getting a PS2 solely for it.
Now with that backstory out of the way, I got a PS3 slim recently after hearing that The Last Guardian was part of the ICO/SOTC franchise, but also for Demon's Souls.
This game turned out to be the best 60$ I have ever spent on a game, and thats really saying something considering I usually torrent THEN buy.
The Soundtrack is amazing, each boss gets its own theme, and it paints a vivid picture. The gameplay is extremely challenging, immersive, and unique. The graphics upscale EXTREMELY well for anyone out there coming from the Crysis side of the woods, after a while you don't even notice the lack of AA.
In all, even people who do no enjoy this sort of game cannot deny, that in fact, in hard fact, the amount of detail in this game excels in ALL aspects, and should be the equal attention every game's aspects deserve.
I was thrilled with Fallout 3 as the best game I played it's release year. And for once I feel that my PS3 will get much use, if only for Demon's Souls.
Demon's Souls gets too easy once you pass the first world and learn to abuse the shield and spear.
...until you hit NG+.
I will never trust famitsu's score ever again.
Demon's Souls is to gaming like a mouth is to a gay man, you know it sucks a ton of dick.
i don't get it...
But to a gay man, wouldn't a dick-sucking mouth be the best thing ever?
great game, finished it last night. Dragon age was good but demon's soul was more unique and innovative and probably more fun. But both are addictive.
HELL YEAH !!
Best game of 2009 - gamespot
Holy shit I thought something mainstream like uncharted 2 was going to win.. that's awesome..
Exactly, it was a total surprise, but a refreshing one!
..Of course, MW2 fanboys aren't happy.
Famitsu scored it low? No surprise, japs have bad taste in gaming.
Famitsu isn't receiving any money from Atlus, I guess.
The game was made by From Software, Atlus just published it in the west.
And your taste in games are better?
I hate demon souls... Yet I can't stop playing ><...
It's too addicting X3
yeah i know what you mean, i mean you can't just let the bosses stomp on you. gotta pay back some.
yep...that flamelurker has to be the boss i hate the most...
i just wish that there was an option to do 1vs1 battles and not run into 1vs2 or 1vs3...
i cant tell you the number of times i invaded and got killed by 2 blue souls...
then again...i do like surprises...
precisely, there are some really...evil Black phantoms, you're just not evil enough.
so what your telling me to be is to spam a single weapon/spell like everyone else?
...no thanks i rather kill with skill than use a one hit kill skill...that takes away all the fun....
but you are right......im not evil enough to take on 3 people at the same time ^^U... thats why i assasinate the summoner...:3
Then don't spam a single weapon/spell? I've seen many ridiculously good Black Phantoms that actually don't spam spear attacks and spells. I've even seen Black Phantoms that are just grievers, equipping scrapping spear and Acid cloud just to screw with you so that you spend all your soul points to repair your gear. I hope you do realize killing Blue Phantoms when you invade gives you all their soul points or at least a ton of it.
Don't be a noob, you're invading someone's game and you can lure the game's enemies to kill him. Besides if you can't take on 3 guys when you're invading don't do in the first place.
You know you're contradicting yourself there, right? >_>
How's that a contradiction? Go back to school.
Well deserved.
well yeah, Demon's soul is an awesome game (if you don't mind a little difficulty that is), but why is having a recommendation from gamespot a good thing? Are there still people who actually trust them or care about anything they have to say?
I do. It helps on deciding if the game is something I'll like or not. Even if the rating is bad, for example Monster Hunter, their reviews and videos can help me determine if the game is for me or not. Besides the reviewer is one person, you can't expect their tastes will favor yours.
We could say the same about Famitsu but it doesn't stop people obsessing over their worthless ratings.
well i guess bioware was wrong about jrpg being crap eh?
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
NO
Oh jesus christ, come on..
Do people really not realize that gamespot is payed to give bad/good reviews?
Their sponsors decide what reviews and votes get/win..
This isn't so much a J-RPG as it is a W-RPG from Japan.
This sort of hardcore RPG has always had a good following in Japan. From Software has been making games like Demons Souls since the PSOne days with King's Field. The Japanese Wizardy games are also very very good. Dark Spire was also a wonderful hardcore dungeon crawler that was released in the US this year (and sold abysmally). These games are not influenced by current American console RPG trends so much as they are influenced by Dungeons and Dragons and pre turn of the millenium fantasy literature. They have a great sense of danger and adventure to them that reminds me of playing pen and paper rpgs with my buds as a kid. I'm glad Demon's Souls is doing so well in the US. It's not a J-RPG that's trying to be a W-RPG. It's just a damn good game on its own merits.
Agreed. When Bioware was talking about stagnant JRPGs, they certainly didn't mean Demon's Souls which is about as non-Japanese as RPGs come.
You can if most of them adhere to the same formula.
but that would make the original argument pointless, since you first say that JRPGs are stagnant, unchanging, yet you then deny this game to be part of the genre of JRPGs BECAUSE it's different.
It's still a Japanese RPG. You can't just pigeonhole JRPGs as a specific game formula and then deride that game formula as formulaic. That's cheating.
Atleats Bioware isnt the one that goes bankrupt after creating their first 3D film (remember Squaresoft,anyone?).
People aren't talking in absolutes, just general trends.
Bioware was right about the typical jRPG experience, and Demon Souls breaks out of that tired mold.
Yep, an Action RPG, or what some people call "stat brawler".
Ironically, it's a better Japanese counterpart to Dragon Age (and most of BioWare's output in general) than most other turn-based tactics JRPGs.
As retarded as Bioware's claim was, it's still silly to blow off what they said based on one game.
But yeah, Demon's Souls is a part of a really good lineup of RPGs released this year. It's the first time since FFTA that I've played a game without knowing or caring about what time of day it was.
BioWare is based in the city where I live, I actually had the privilege to meet and work with some of their staff on a government project.
Everyones opinion is different when it comes to things. I can't really take this claim as the thoughts of the entire company and everyone in it.
I know you've met people in RL where they've heavily mocked anime and related things and met people who had similar interests. Can't really go and say that e.g. "All americans are idiots when it comes dissing the anime industry when they're so hyped out about men in tights" right?
Call me biased if you want since in a way I've been to both sides of the fence on the issue but that's what I think.
Seeing how Mass Effect is evolving Bioware might be returning to the quality they had when they released baldurs gate and hopefully even improving the experience. They claimed this also when releasing dragon age which didn't impress nor disappoint me. However Bioware is one of the few companies of which I like all RPG's they release. Even KOTOR was awesome (and I don't even like starwars!).
ME 2 is "evolving" in a third person shooter... but you are right with DA it was more a NWN3 or KotoR 3 that a successor of BG2...
Maybe it's just me, but Bioware isn't exactly "evolving" their RPG style either. I haven't played all of their games, but from the few I have, I noticed the game follows the same trend of allowing you a choice of good or bad, and multiple answers which affect the outcome.
JRPG has its highlights and its downlights.Some of their stories are truly good,while some are downright ugly.The game system are also the same.For me the best JRPG still Chrono Trigger and the Dragon Quest series.
The best bioware game is stil Baldur gate,KOTOR and NWN.
The most inovative RPG of all time is still the ULTIMA series,now thats old school.
You guyz seem to forget that there isnt one JRPG released through the entire year.
"Most JRPGS" of them are the same, by all rights shouldn't u say FFXIII should get GOTY?
This is like 1 in a million for every Demon Souls u have your Star Oceans, Infinte Discoveries, Last Renmanats, FFXIIIs, Tales of Vesperia etc.
Most of these games dont have choices u cannot be evil, you have to be good and freedom is restricted. Sure Demon Souls beats Dragon Age but should you also got to consider the JRPGs or story book games as whole?
Though I still play and love them :)
If you went to read the source of that Bioware comment story. You'd know that the guy actually considers Demon's Soul one of the few good JRPG exceptions. In fact, it's one of his favorite game.
Not really. One really good game a year does not discount the statement. Though I think it was a little harsh, it still has some truth to it.
Besides, three words: MAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSS EFFFFFECCCCCCCT 2
uuuhh... "2" is not a word.
I get the feeling he can't spell 'two'
Demon's Souls is not a jrpg. It has a very western style to it.
Affirming that Demon's Souls belongs to the same genre as stuff like Final Fantasy XIII and even the last two entries in the Persona series is akin to equating Dragon Age to Civilization. Or equating Final Fantasy to Disgaea.
It's the height of stupidity and inane, moot arguing.
If anything, you can look up their respective Japanese genre descriptions. FFXIII is a "cinematic RPG", Disgaea is a "simulation RPG" (lol), and Demon's Souls is a plain "action RPG". The only thing they have in common is that they show you characters' statuses in the form of numbers, and that's it, they're entirely non-comparable.
So... just quit it.
How about Diablo series can that be compared to Demon Soul?
Yes, seems fair. Even stuff like X-Men Legends or Marvel Ultimate Alliance are fair game. You have to take into consideration how old and mechanically dated the Diablo games are, but they indeed share a good deal of common ground.
jrpg = japanese role-playing game
jrpg=ff styled games with much talking and very little stat based character development. oh and lets not forget super special teenagers saving the world.
Well.. if you take in ccount that this is ONE JRPG getting good reviews, whereas most of them don't... But more importantly, this game offers something new in gameplay mechanics. Most of the games of that genre in Japan did not...
While I don't completely agree with the Bioware person who said that, I can't help but think that he is mostly right about the disparity between the RPG genre...
Bioware's comment did have merit. Most jrpg are akin to comfort food. Demon's Souls is not a typical jrpg. In fact, it mimics the western RPG.
"Curious that one of Japan’s stagnant RPGs managed to beat out a truly groundbreaking game like Dragon Age…"
This last sentence reeks of weeaboo.
"This last sentence reeks of weeaboo"
I loled
true fact.
This is Sankaku, no surprise there.
Agree'd. Because wtf would a weeaboo want with a site like this. >_>
Bioware's comment did have merit.
It was just ridiculous that it was Bioware who claimed it was stagnant and had no choices.
Typical Bioware RPG choice,
"I will join you"
"No"
"You will need me on your quest"
"No, I can only choose three people anyways.
"We need all the assistance we can have!"
"No, seriously I don't like you."
"Fuck you, your taking me anyways, oh and I'm going to autolevel along with you as well."
Bioware's comment was right, just that it was a case of the pot calling the kettle black...
you obviously are pulling shit out of your ass in this argument, have you even played this game? How could you argue about this if you only know one side?
one of the few jrpgs i havent played is demons soul. from the videos that shit looks kickass. but in no way does it fit into the jrpg scheme. seems im forgetting this isnt a proper image board with post links, sorry.
yes, obviously - witcher, dao, kotor, mass effect and f3 cannot present any innovation at all.
who needs actual role playing with a world reacting to YOUR actions and YOUR character when you could stare at HD PANTSU through the eyes of generic adolescent angst ridden protagonist nr xyz, who gets the said item delivered to him while enjoying his ride on the railway from lvl 1 schoolboy to lvl 100 master of the known universe.
Can't handle having anyone complimenting anything except ur beloved western superiority, eh?
You just gave me some good laughs, sir.
Can't handle having anyone complimenting anything except ur beloved eastern superiority, eh?
You just gave me some good laughs, sir.
go back to watching avatar, western fag.
you'd think people would have learn by now that the word weaboo means nothing in here...
you'd think that people by know would know that weeaboo has long lost any original meaning or effect and has just become a meaningless insult tossed BY A WEEABOO towards other weeaboos they disagree with.
Actually Bioware's the weaboo that happened to get beaten silly by Demon's Souls.
Anyways... not sure which newgame++++ I was on but the game isn't overly difficult, much less on the first play through X_X
Good games are good, who cares if they're w or j? The idea of games "winning" and "losing" is "retarded".